Electric heater.



No. 747,185. PATENTED DEG. l5, 1903. y

E. W. KELLEY L J. F. MOELROY. I

ELECTRIC HEATER.

APPLIQATION FILED MAY 17. 1897. Y No MODEL. a sums-sum1: 1.

i Y \X\\ \Y\ No. 747,185. PATENTED DEC. l5, 1903.

' E. W. KELLEY & J. F. MOELROY.

ELECTRIC HEATER.

APPLICATION PILEI` MAY 17. 1897.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

No HoDEL.

1117 l l /lll/v/lll ll No. 747,185. EATENTED EE0. 15, 1903.

E. W. KELLEY L J. E. MOEEEOY.

ELECTRIC HEATER. n APPLICATION FILED MAY 17. 1897.

N0 MODEL. 3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

' '2L BMA/ML UNITED STATES Patented December 15, 1903.

PATENT OEEICE.

FREDERICK W. KELLEY AND JAMES F. MCELROY, OF ALBANY, NEW YORK, ASSIGNORSTO CONSOLIDATED CAR-HEATING COMPANY, OF ALBANY,

NEW YORK.

ELECTRIC HEATER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 747,185, dated December15, 1903. Application led May 17, 1897- Serial No. 686,897. (No model.)v

T0 @ZZ whom, it may concern:

'Be it known that we, FREDERICK W. KEL- LEY and J AMES F. McELRoY,citizens of the United States, residing in the city and county ofAlbany, State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements inElectric Heaters, of which the following is a specication.

Our invention relates to devices for heating by electricity; and theobject of our invention is to provide an electric heater so constructedthat a large amount of resistance may be placed in a small compass andto allow for the free circulation of air in contact with a large portionof the resistance. We attain this object by means of the mechanismillustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is a planwith part broken away. Fig. 2 is a section along the lines y y. Fig. 3is a cross-section of a modified form; and Fig. 4 is a section along thelines ,a z of Fig. 3 with part broken away, showing section a; x on Fig.3. Fig. 5 is asection showing our heater placed in the floor of anapartment.

Similar letters refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

In order to obtain the greatest amount of efficiency in an electricheater, it is necessary to arrange a large quantity of resistance and toprovide for the free passage of air in contact with the greatestpossible portion of the resistance-surface. In order to accomplish thisresult, We use a coil of Wire or a series of coils, if preferred,separating the coils from each other by means of suitable insulatingmaterial in such a manner that the coil may vibrate only in thedirectionof its length and so that the air to be heated shall passthrough it at right angles 4to the plane of the coil. It is apparentthat the form of the heater may be that of a flat disk or that of arectangle, as shown in Fig. 3, or in any other suitable form. l/Ve donot, therefore, limit ourselves to any particular shape of heater. Wemay thus arrange an electric heater in the surface of the floor, asshown in Fig. 5, the plate K, through which the heated air passes intothe apartment, being flush with the oor or thereabout, forming aregister.

Referring to Figs. l and 2, A represents a casting provided withperfor-ations, carrying a disk A', onto which is secured (or it may bemade integral therewith) an annular projecting rim B, forming a supportor rest for one' end of the porcelain or other non-conducting supports OC, the other end of said non conducting supports resting upon thecasting A. We thus arrange a series of nonconducting supports extendingradially from the center of the heater. For a resistance we preferablyuse a wire coiled in the form of a spiral spring, and beginning near thecenter of the heater and supported from the block or core E we coil theresistance R in a spiral path around the heater, separating each coilfrom the adjacent coil by means of an insulating substance F, preferablyasbestes. On the top of the coil thus arranged We place a series ofporcelain strips G G immediately over the non-conducting supports O Oand hold them in position by means of the spider H, which has aprojecting tongue 7L, adapted to fit into a correspondinggroove g in theporcelain strips Gr. For the purpose of holding the porcelain strips,resistance, and insulating material firmly in position we place the bolt.I through the spider, the block E, and the casting A and secure thesame by means of the nutj on the end thereof or in any suitable manner.We place the casing K around the heater, securing the same to the disk Aby means of suitable bolts a a or in any suitable manner. The plate K isprovided with a series of openings Zr; Zo at the front and side,allowing for the free passage of air.

In Figs. 3 and a we arrange a plate L, which is the front plate of theheater and upon which area series of inwardly-projecting` lugs Z Z,engaging with the porcelain strips M M, said porcelain strips eachhaving recesses cut therein to fit upon the projecting lugs Z Z, thefaces of the porcelain strips M M opposite to those provided with therecesses itting upon the projecting lugs Z Z having a series of groovesformed therein, within which the resistauce-coils R rest, said porcelainstrips M M also having notches cut in their surfaces adjacent to saidgrooves, within which the asbestos or other non-conducting material FIOO is partially inserted. We place strips of porcelain N N or othernon-conducting substance, each having one of its surfaces provided withgrooves and notches,within which that portion of the resistance R andthe insulating substance F which projects beyond the recesses in theporcelains M M have a seat, and thus one pair of said porcelain strips,M, is placed beneath the resistance R, and the other, N, placed abovesuch resistance, the two pairs of non-conducting strips thus securelyholding the coils R and the insulating substance F in position. We thusprovide a series of reversible porcelains between which the resistanceis placed and to which it is secured.

We place the spider H, provided with a tongue h, fitting into a recessin the porcelain strips N, and secure said spider by means of a bolt J,passing through the plate L, through the porcelain strips M and N, orsecure the spider in any suitable manner. The series of porcelain stripsare arranged at suitable distances apart throughout the length of theheater. The plate L is perforated, allowing for the free circulation ofair in contact with the resistance. We preferably place a plate O, ofinsulating material, back of the heater and slightly separated form saidinsulating substance, thus forming a rear passage-way through which thepartially-warmed air is carried from the resistance-conductor nearestthe face-plate, through which the air enters the heater, to theresistance-conductor nearestA the discharge-opening of the heater. Inthe rear of the heater we arrange a plate P, and within the plate P wearrange suitable openings p and in the plate L an opening p', allowingthe air to circulate freely between the plate P and the insulatingmaterial O to prevent the heater from burning the casing, upon which itmay be placed.

The heater shown in Figs. 3 and 4 is adapted to be arranged in avertical position having one edge, the top of the heater, the other thebottom, so that the opening 1o' shall be at the bottom of the heater.The air will then enter through the opening 1o', come in contact withthe resistance nearest said opening, will be heated and a portionthereof will pass upward through the space between the casing and theheater and out at the opening p. The rest of the air will pass upward incontact with the resistance above the opening p and out into the roomthrough the opening in the plate L, near the top of the heater.

At the ends of the heater, attached to the plate L, we arrange porcelainstrips Q, having a series of knobs S thereon and attach the resistance Rto one of said knobs, extending said resistance to the other end of theheater, where it is straightened out and passed over two similar knobs SS 4and in this manner throughout the extent of the heater.

In each of these forms of heater we have shown a resistance so arrangedthat the wires are held firmly in position, so that however much the caror other apartment in which they are placed may be agitated there isabsolutely no possibility of the resistance being affected by thevibration, except longitudinally or lengthwise of the wire, which coulddo no damage, and therefore there is no opportunity forshort-circuiting, especially because the adjacent coils are securelyseparated by insulating material, and said insulating material is heldas firmly in position as the coils themselves. A very large amount ofresistance may be thus placed in the heater, and air passing through itat right angles to the plane of the heater will come in contact with avery large amount of the resistance, and thus provide a most eectiveheater.

Our heater is thus composed of two parts arranged in connection witheach other in such a manner that the air shall first come in contactwith one portion of the heater that is part of the resistance placedtherein, which will suciently warm it to cause circulation, the otherportion, the remaining resistance, completing the heating processimmediately before the discharge of the air into the room, and thus agraduated heating process is employed.

The construction shown in Fig. 5 may be placed in the floor in a room asa register, air being admitted through perfor-ations made in the plate Aand conducted thereto by means of a suitable air-box l2.

What we claim as our invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,is-

IOO

1. In an electric heater a resistance in the form of a coil of wirearranged in layers until it assumes the form of a liat disk of wire;layers of non-conducting substance placed between adjacent layers ofsaid resistance and in continuous contact therewith throughout theentire length of the resistance; a casing` composed of two perforatedplates between which said resistance and non-conducting substance areplaced; means for supporting said resistance and non-conductingsubstance securely and positively in position all so arranged andconnected up that the air to be warmed shall pass through theperforations in one of said plates and through said resistance at rightangles to the plane of said disk of resistance and out through theperforations in the other of said plates, substantially as described.

2. In an electric heater,a resistance; a nonconducting substance placedbetween adjacent layers of and in continuous contact with saidresistance throughout its entire length; a face-plate arranged to allowfor the passage of airinto the heater,and come in contact with saidresistance and for its discharge therefrom after being heated; arearplate; a means for conveying the partially-warmed air passing into theheater through openings in the rear plate to the resistance nearest thedischarge-opening, substantially as described.

3. In an electric heater, a perforated faceplate; a rear plate; aresistance; a partition IIO IZO

of non-conducting substance placed between the resistance and the rearplate so arranged and connected up that air to be heated may enter theheater through openings in the faceplate near the bottom of the heater,come into contact with the resistance and be discharged through openingsin the faceeplate near the top of the heater, and also so that air mayenter through an opening in the rear plate near the bottom of the heaterand be discharged after coming into contact with the resistance nearestthe discharge-opening through the said dischargeppening in theface-plate.

4. In an electric heater, a face-plate with openings for receiving airto come in contact with the resistance to be heated and openings for thedischarge of the heated air; a resistance; a curved rear plate having anopening for the passage of air to be heated; a nonconducting materialplaced between said resistance and said rear plate; the air passage- Waybetween the rear plate and the said noncond noting substance registeringwith the said discharge-opening in the face-place, substantially asdescribed.

5. In an electric heater, a face-plate and a rear plate; a resistance; apartition between the resistance and said rear plate; a means forbringingl the air to be heated through openings in said face-plate iucontact With said resistance and discharging the same through openingsin the face-plate; a means for con- Veying air through openings in therear plate and discharging same through the said discharge-openings inthe face-plate, substantially as described.

Albany, New York, May 13, 1897.

FREDERICK W. KELLEY. JAMES F. MCELROY. vVitnessesz CHAs. B. MITCHELL,GEO. A. GREGG.

